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“We didn’t know if Ben was going to make it but he did”

Angela’s pregnancy had already been under close watch from her specialist team when things began to escalate around 26 weeks. With high blood pressure and ongoing discomfort, Angela had made a few trips to hospital, but it was at 28 weeks that things suddenly became serious.

“I had a bleed and had to rush into Hutt Hospital,” Angela remembers. “They monitored me there, but late that night they decided it wasn’t safe for me to stay. That’s when Wellington Free Ambulance came and transferred me to Wellington Hospital.”

It was the middle of the night. Angela was scared and in pain and facing the very real possibility that her baby would be born far too early.

“They told me I wouldn’t be leaving the hospital until he was born, and I still had 12 weeks to go. That was terrifying.”

“Ben would stop breathing… then come back”

During those first few days in hospital, Angela was closely monitored. But her baby boy, Ben, was not doing well. His heart rate kept dropping. Sometimes he would stop breathing entirely only to stabilise again a few minutes later.

Just a few days after being admitted, Ben had a significant “bleep” on the monitor.

“It was a long, scary buzz. The specialists were all called in. Then it happened again, and they hit the emergency button.”

Angela’s partner Daniel had just arrived home in Upper Hutt only to be called back immediately. Within the hour, their son was delivered by emergency C-section at exactly 29 weeks.

The birth didn’t go smoothly. Angela stopped breathing. Her placenta was positioned unusually high and difficult to detach. “It all went terribly wrong,” she says.

But Ben came out “perfectly”, weighing just about 1,020 grams. “I told my older boys he’s the size of a block of cheese,” Angela laughs.

“How was I going to see my baby every day?”

Ben was moved to NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) at Wellington Hospital and would stay there until he was stable enough to be transferred back to Hutt Hospital weeks later. Angela, meanwhile, could only stay in hospital for a week before she was discharged home.

“I wasn’t allowed to drive for six weeks. My C-section was traumatic. Internally I was a mess. I had no idea how I was going to get back and forth to see Ben every day.”

Angela’s family lived far away. Her mum had health issues. Her partner had to keep working to support the family. “I was in the hospital panicking do I roster people in to drive me? I had no idea how I was going to make it work.”

Then, at just the right time, someone at the hospital suggested contacting Wellington Free Ambulance.

“Wellington Free Ambulance picked me up every day, it changed everything for us”

With support from Wellington Free’s Patient Transfer Service, Angela was able to be with her baby every day.

“They picked me up from my home in Upper Hutt at 9:00am and took me to Wellington Hospital. Then they brought me home again around 2:00pm. I could still be home for my older boys when they finished school.”

Every single day, the team was there.

“It was life-changing,” Angela says. “At a time when everything was hard – my recovery, my sick baby, trying to hold the family together, Wellington Free Ambulance just made it work.”

Angela spent hours in NICU doing kangaroo holds, providing breastmilk, and simply being there. “That closeness was essential for Ben’s development. Emotionally, it meant I could be part of his journey. I wasn’t just sitting at home worrying. I was with him.”

“They weren’t just doing their job, they truly cared”

Angela met a number of Wellington Free Ambulance staff through her daily transfers -paramedics and patient transfer officers. Though the shifts rotated, many came back again and again.

“They got to know me, and they got to know Ben’s story. Every time, they’d ask how he was doing. It was more than just a ride. It felt like catching up with friends.”

One patient transfer officer was there at the beginning and again at the end. A full-circle moment Angela still remembers fondly.

“They were just the most genuine, caring people. I looked fine on the outside, but I was struggling. And they just got it.”

“Even after Ben came home, they were there for us”

When Ben finally reached 40 weeks and came home, Angela thought the toughest part was behind them. But one night, not long after he’d settled in, Ben started choking in his sleep.

“We rang 111 and Wellington Free was there so fast. We told them he was a premmie who’d just come home, they didn’t even hesitate.”

The paramedics assessed Ben and calmly recommended a trip to Hutt Hospital for further checks. “They didn’t make it scary. They made us feel safe.”

“Wellington Free Ambulance became part of our family”

Angela speaks about Wellington Free Ambulance with deep gratitude.

“From emergency transfers to daily rides and follow-up care they’ve been with us through every part of this journey.”

Even the ride from Wellington to Hutt when Ben was transferred was handled with kindness and care.

“He was in an incubator, and it felt like such a short trip but such a massive moment. The crew were so reassuring. I didn’t know them, but I trusted them completely.”

“They gave me something priceless – time with my baby”

Angela reflects often on what that daily support meant for her and her family.

“They were just doing their job, but for me, it was everything. I could be with my son when he needed me most. I could heal. I could still be a mum to my older boys.”

And to Angela, that’s something you can’t put a price on.

“Wellington Free Ambulance didn’t just help us, they became part of our family.”

Right now, we urgently need your help to ensure our team have the vehicles they need to complete patient transfers safely and comfortably in a specially designed dual stretcher ambulance so we can help more families like Angela’s. Please donate now at www.supportwfa.org.nz